IQ: What's the news?

More and more, opinion, personality and confrontational partisanship seem to attract more play in news reportage than "the news," per se.

Richard Bell
Pikes Peak Park

Glass business owner

Name the top local news story of 2009. The way the city thinks it doesn't have to cut back like everybody else.

Relate the most newsworthy thing about you this year. I collect Hudson automobiles. Until about 10 years ago, I reproduced parts for Hudsons, too. Our national club recently asked me to start up again. That'll be a nice retirement thing for me.

Do you have a favorite local news person? She's been gone for a while, but I really liked Sandra Mann. She had a nice way about her.

What's this year's biggest news story? How people have had to cope and survive in an economy where jobs are disappearing. Also, how Barack Obama is dealing with the war. Is he going end it within the 18-month period that he said?

Have you ever deliberately placed yourself in a news vacuum? I have, but it undermined my confidence each time because everyone knew more about what was going on than I did.

Name your all-time favorite national news person. Dan Rather. He was eloquent and he spoke truthfully to both sides of the story — the opposite of the FOX News style.

Who's your least favorite news person? Rush Limbaugh. He's doing his job by getting people engaged with what he says, but he's so insulting and so into drama.

Lisa Smith
Mountain Shadows

Professional musician

Cite the most important news story of 2009. All the things that have gone on in the attempt to bring about health care reform.

Name the biggest local story. The city budget problems and how the people and city leaders have different ideas of how money should be spent and where support should go.

What's this year's most fascinating news development? The demise of Tiger Woods as a sports icon.

Have you ever deliberately put yourself in a news vacuum? I did just before the '08 presidential election when the animosity got too stressful, and I did it just before the last local election because of the animosity over 2C. I felt better both times for doing that.